About Me

Retired teacher with experience of life outside the classroom.Was, amongst other things, prior to becoming a schoolteacher,a barbers boy, a Woolworth's trainee,a windowdresser,an office clerk, a farm labourer and a youth leader.Oh, and for all of four hours a Betterware salesman.

Thursday, 7 August 2014

Driving or Driven have You ever been in charge

The world news recently included the possibility, nay probability that some
cars in the future would be driverless. The technology is already here.
Vehicles have been tested for thousands of miles. No steering wheel, all done
by sensors via satellites. The details are almost unimportant, like it or not,
change waits for no man.

This brings possibilities that are beyond our comprehension. (Try
the idea out on friends or acquaintances and step back to avoid the vitriolic
comments.) Many of us, especially males consider ourselves wonderful behind a
wheel. The idea of 'competing' with a driverless car on the motorway, 'driven'
by a blind man is not easily accepted! Fancy driving through my hometown Derby
in a car with no steering wheel, avoiding inebriated jaywalkers, the idea is
fascinating. Who gets the blame when you run over someone, you or the car;
or the satellite in charge? And does this technology mean you can sleep
on long journeys and arrive at your destination refreshed?

I can understand driverless trains, but they run on rails. Plus I find
aeroplanes amazing; even more so when the pilot takes his hand off whatever
keeps it flying in a straight line. Surely you wouldn't drive into a dark
tunnel with your eyes shut. so why do you fly in a plane that has the pilot on
his break in another 'room' ( I am a geriatric who has never flown in an
aeroplane; no kidding! And I wouldn't transport a dog in some of the conditions
you are expected to endure on some flights I have witnessed.) Regarding the driverless
road vehicles the idea is to have some of the cars on our roads by 2015. Watch
this space; on second thoughts, watch that car coming down the road with the
owner sitting in the back reading his newspaper.

All of this technological talk set me thinking. In life in general; are
you the driver, or are you driven! I know of many who are adamant that they are
'in charge', their 'destiny' is in their hands. Now self assurance is
commendable, but I reckon, and have always thought so that we are 'driven' not
'drivers' in life.; let me tell you why.

Throughout our short lives we make decisions. We don't have a say on
where we are born. We do, to a certain degree have a choice where we live out
our lives. Our qualifications and wealth, or lack of either, will, to a degree,
determine where we live out our lives. We have some choices as humans, but only
up to a point; my position in life is fairly well decided for me give and take
a little leeway. I can't be the next King of England for instance. I'm not even
king of my own castle, so to speak; my wife and two daughters see to that! I
reckon the only thing I'm in charge of is the television remote, but don't tell
anyone. I have limited control of my health; of any case even the richest
amongst us seldom live beyond a hundred years of age. Death is the great
leveller, whoever may we be. (Concerning our religious friends, a belief in an
'Afterlife' and all that is not relevant to this blog post.)

Its a funny old life to be sure. Our ancestors hoped, guessed their
might be 'something else' to life. That's why man has always worshipped
statues, idols, craven images; be they intellectual modern men living in
concrete jungles or mere natives in some real green jungle in a far off
land. Modern man thinks he's so clever at times. But driverless cars, I bet few
of you saw that coming. On second thoughts, it doesn't really matter. Car
accidents are caused by drivers, NOT the car! When a driverless car approaches,
NO problem, NO FOOL OF A DRIVER TO CONTEND WITH! Driverless cars, bring them
on!

I trust you will find these Youtube films both
entertaining and educational.

6 comments:

Some of us women like to drive also, just a little FYI. As far as cars that drive themselves, in some ways good. It does take out human error and the distracted drivers . But I enjoy changing gears, Making those engines purr and yes even racing up a highway a little.As far as the human are we driven or do we drive, I think you are right on the money. The answer is both. We can only control so much, choose so much. The rest is out of our gripping on the steering wheel hands.